Atomic Orbital ShapesWilliam F. ColemanThis applet shows 3-dimensional representations of hydrogenic orbital surfaces. Orbital phase is shown by the different colors. The images are rotatable and scalable. This applet will run very slowly on older, slower machines.

Atomic Properties / Structure |

Enrichment / Review Materials

d Orbitals in an Octahedral Ligand FieldWilliam F. ColemanHere is a page that shows the d orbitals in an axis set. Running the mouse over an orbital reveals the "name" of that orbital. This is good practice for helping students link the name of an orbital to the orientation. This page is linked to an interactive 3-dimensional applet, similar to the one above, that shows the d orbitals in an octahedral ligand field. The user may also click on the name of any one of the d orbitals to obtain a larger 3-dimensional image. The images are rotatable and scalable.

Interactive Electron ConfigurationsWilliam F. ColemanAn application that allows students to drag electrons onto energy levels to construct electron configurations for atoms up to atomic number Ar. The student is responsible for obeying the fundamental rules of quantum mechanics.

Quantum States of Atoms and MoleculesTheresa Julia Zielinski, Erica Harvey, Robert Sweeney, David M. HansonQuantum States of Atoms and Molecules is an introduction to quantum mechanics as it relates to spectroscopy, the electronic structure of atoms and molecules, and molecular properties. A digital, living textbook, it provides opportunities not found in conventional textbooks opportunities that allow students to develop skills in information processing, critical thinking or analytical reasoning, and problem solving that are so important for success.

Shapes of d OrbitalsWilliam F. ColemanShapes of d Orbitals shows the d orbitals in an axis set. Running the mouse over an orbital reveals the "name" of that orbital. This is good practice for helping students link the name of an orbital to the orientation.Shapes of d Orbitals has a link to D Orbitals in an Octahedral Ligand Field. Here the user may click on the name of any one of the d orbitals to obtain a larger 3-dimensional image. The images are rotatable and scalable. Orbital phase is shown by the different colors.

Connected ChemistryMike StieffConnected Chemistry, a novel learning environment for teaching chemistry, is appropriate for use in both high school and undergraduate chemistry classrooms. Connected Chemistry comprises several molecular simulations designed to enable instructors to teach chemistry using the perspective of emergent phenomena. That is, it allows students to see observed macro-level chemical phenomena, like many other scientific phenomena, as resultant from the interactions of many individual agents on a micro-level. This perspective is especially appropriate to the study of chemistry where the interactions between multitudes of molecules on the atomic level give rise to the macro-level concepts that students study in the classroom. Connected Chemistry comprises molecular simulations embedded in the NetLogo modeling software (1). The collection contains several predesigned simulations of closed chemical systems to teach specific chemistry concepts. Currently, Connected Chemistry contains models for teaching Brønsted Lowry acid base theory, enzyme kinetics, radical polymerization, buffer chemistry, kinetics, chemical equilibrium, and crystallization. Instructors and students can individually tailor the predesigned simulations or generate new simulations as they are needed in the context of a particular lesson, classroom, or department.

Acids / Bases |

Gases |

Kinetics |

Nuclear / Radiochemistry |

pH |

Titration / Volumetric Analysis |

Polymerization |

Equilibrium |

Catalysis

Solving the Hydrogen AtomTodd M. HamiltonAfter practicing with the particle-in-a-box problem, students solve the H atom symbolically using the derivatives feature in MathCad. The result is an expression for the energy levels of the hydrogen atom. Students will also prove that the radial part of the wavefunction is normalized and explore the concept of an orbital.

Mathematics / Symbolic Mathematics |

Quantum Chemistry

Atomic SpectraWilliam F. ColemanIn this Flash animation the user can view the atomic emission spectra (400-700nm) of eight different elements. A dragable marker allows the user to approximate the wavelength of the various spectral lines. The effect of resolution can be examined in the sodium spectrum in the region 550-600nm.

Atomic Spectroscopy |

Quantum Chemistry |

Enrichment / Review Materials

Bohr Hydrogen Atom Emission SeriesWilliam F. ColemanIn this Excel spreadsheet students use interactive arrows to explore various series in the hydrogen spectrum. The arrows change the final quantum state of the series. A second tab opens a sheet that allows exploration of the spectra of other one-electron species, by varying the nuclear charge. The nuclear charge is entered and the arrows again control the final state of the spectral series.

Atomic Spectroscopy |

Quantum Chemistry |

Enrichment / Review Materials

Photoelectric EffectWilliam F. ColemanThis is a series of simulations of aspects of the photoelectric effect. There is an animation of the experiment with four choices of incident radiation - low and high intensity "red", to represent low energy light and low and high intensity "blue" to represent higher energy light. Electron production is animated and there is an ammeter to simulate current flow. Additional simulations show the effect of light frequency and intensity. There is a link to a spreadsheet that allows students to choose a sample from among five metals. The spreadsheet includes several questions to be answered after working through the materials.

Photochemistry |

Quantum Chemistry |

Enrichment / Review Materials

Restricted Hartree-Fock SCF Calculations Using Microsoft ExcelMark A. Freitag, Cortney A. Boots, Taylor R. PageCourses in computational chemistry are increasingly common at the undergraduate level. Excellent user-friendly programs, which make the execution of ab initio calculations quite simple, are available. However, there is a danger that the underlying SCF procedure (usually coupled with contracted Gaussian atomic orbital basis sets) can become a ?black box? for the student. This Microsoft Excel spreadsheet contains all the essential elements of far more complicated ab initio calculations, but on the simplest possible molecular system.

Computational Chemistry |

Mathematics / Symbolic Mathematics |

MO Theory |

Quantum Chemistry |

Theoretical Chemistry

Interactive SpreadsheetsWilliam F. ColemanInteractive Excel spreadsheets display hard-to-understand concepts in statistics, quantum mechanics, physics, and more. Parameters are adjusted by clicking on easy-to-use buttons or by using numeric input boxes. Graphs, tables, and/or figures are then created reflecting the change in parameters.